Pretty rounded pink flowers, bright green reminiscent of vegetation ... No doubt "nerikiri."

Nerikiri is the symbol of Japanese wagashi and it allows you to “feel” the flavor due to a unique shape or color. The ingredients are very simple and there are only three "Shiroan," which is made by steaming white beans and white azuki beans and mixing them with sugar to make a paste, "Tsunagi," is processed from glutinous rice and colored powder to create color.

With the magic of a Japanese confectionery craftsman who freely manipulates these three, it becomes a beautiful model. It is not only beautiful, but also expresses the plants and scenery of each season. Each nerikiri is filled with the scenery of Japan.

[Motif example]
Spring ... cherry blossom petals, green canola flower, cute bush warblers
Summer ... purple hydrangea, dazzling sunflowers, fireworks rising in the sky
Autumn ... autumn leaves that color the mountains, madder red dragonflies, pale pink cosmos
Winter ... vivid red camellia, auspicious crane, pussy willow with powder snow

Using your imagination, do you get a feeling the four seasons of Japan?

That is only natural. Nerikiri is a Japanese wagashi used in the traditional Japanese tea ceremony and is one of the "Jo-namagashi" that ranks high among Japanese wagashi. It has the role of providing just the right amount of sweetness to counter the bitterness of "matcha" used in the tea ceremony.

Since it is an elegant Japanese wagashi, it is not eaten directly by hand, but with special toothpicks. These toothpicks can be used to cut Nerikiri into bite-sized pieces and to put these pieces in your mouth. This enables you to enjoy Japanese wagashi even if you can’t use chopsticks.

These toothpicks have another important role. "Kuromoji," a toothpick made of fragrant wood, has a faint sweet scent like a flower and a flavor that remains when you put it in your mouth. This enhances the elegant sweetness of Nerikiri and makes it even more exceptional.

Please try to experience wagashi at a reputed shop while you are in Japan.

Please note that nerikiri is not intended to satisfy your appetite, but rather for you to get to love the four seasons.
As nerikiri is not very filling, if you are hungry, it is recommended that you enjoy it after your meal.

This time I will explain 菓子.(“Kashi”)
The first character 菓(“Ka”) is a combination of "艹" and "果."
果is a hieroglyph that represents a lot of fruit on a tree.
As it has a "艹" on it, it shows sweet fruit that grass and trees bear.
子(“Shi”) is a small person spreading his hands and represents a child.
So 菓子(“Kashi”) may have originally been sweet food for children.
However, today both adults and children love sweets in Japan.